Dental check-ups and modern dental history

Just a few decades ago dentist did little preventative work. Most dentist visits were set up to fix an often painful problem. People went to their local dentist because something was hurting or broken or both. Having bad breath was almost the norm. Fifty years ago, as toothpaste was becoming a commercially competitive product and as science was isolating ways to prevent cavities, dentist began recommending more and more preventative care. It’s working too.

Five decades ago adults, on average, experienced twice as many permanent teeth lost over a lifetime as they do now. Cavity incident keeps seeing lower and lower numbers. Dentist and dental hygienist prevent and help reverse more cases of gum disease and decay than ever before.

How frequent do check-ups really need to be?

Every patient and every mouth is different. On average most people benefit from a twice a year check-up with their dentist. Due to genetics and biology, some patients need to be seen slightly less and some slightly more. In the occasional patient there are circumstances that predicate a increased schedule of visits. You may even need appointments as frequently as every three to four months. Higher risk patients include those who;

Smoke

Pregnant women

Diabetics

People with current gum disease

People with a weak immune response to bacterial infection

People who tend to get cavities or build up plaque

How to determine the right frequency of visits for you

First, discuss your oral health with your dentist, ensure you’ve established a good at home hygiene regimen. Keep in mind that during a lifetime your dental needs may change, times of stress or illness for example. Then, if you have no cavities, no symptoms of gum disease and are experiencing no other dental issues for a significant period of you time, your dentist may start extending the time between your dental visits.

According to recent statistics, the average American will lose 3 adult teeth in their lifetime, not including wisdom teeth that many adults have removed, rather than lose due to injury or decay. That number may seem staggering to some but is drastically lower than statics dating back in the 1970s when losing 6 to 8 teeth or more in a lifetime was the norm. If you have ever been faced with tooth restoration due to loss or infection you know that the choices can be overwhelming. Once you know that you are going to need to replace a natural tooth with an artificial one you begin weighing all the options. Ceramic implants are considered the gold standard of restoration but the choices can still seem convoluted, considering dentist have so many procedures available to patients. For a multitude of reasons, cost and time being two big factors, patients occasionally find themselves considering getting a bridge, just for now, until they are ready to take that big step into oral surgery and getting permanent ceramic implants.

The answers you’ve been seeking here now.

Getting a bridge will have a permanent and detrimental effect on the teeth nearest the tooth that needs replacing:

To get a proper fit and bonding to the bridge your healthy teeth will need to be filed down, stripped of their outside protective cover, made small enough to allow for the substantial bridgework to fit and be secure

Should those nearby teeth not be in the greatest shape, then you may have to sacrifice additional teeth, further away, to bond the bridge to.

Bridges have a finite life span.

Ten years is about the max but even that is not guaranteed.

Bridges can be pulled off from eating sticky foods.

Cracked or broken bridges can result from a variety of foods consumed also.

Bridges can discolor or the areas around the bond yellow or fade.

Since the nearby teeth must be compromised in order to secure the bridge, those sacrificial teeth are more prone to disease, infection or rot.

Eventually the healthy gum tissues will recede, shrink and pull away from the bridge. This can leave an unsightly and noticeable gap between the bridge and the gum line. (Besides leaving a noticeable gap it also becomes a trap for particles of food and debris that feed pockets of stinky bacteria)

Additionally, since there is not a tooth in the jawbone the bone mass in that area will diminish over time. This can affect the surrounding teeth, especially if you have multiple teeth replaced, it can also affect your jaw line and the contours of your face.

Outcome: a bridge means you will need additional dental work just to maintain and support a tooth replacement that will still, no matter how well you take care of it, need replacing.

Would you believe me if I said that getting a ceramic implant would allow you to skip all that? Yes, there are a couple of visits to get the implant placed and set. There is a visit to ensure the procedure went well and that you have healed all the way. After that? After that you are set. Smile away and be confident that you have the closest thing to your natural teeth possible. Feel good that you are supporting the rest of your teeth and even your overall health.

Toxins trapped inside the body, swirling around inside your body, attacking your immune system and potentially triggering an immune response or inflammation, ultimately wreaking havoc on organs and tissues, compromising an otherwise healthy body. These are the facts of getting a root canal. Most of us would be opposed to having a necrotic cesspool of decay and disease trapped inside our body, essentially, it’s poisonous, also it’s gross.

Trapping dead, and dying tissues and bacterial colonies locked inside the body is exactly what happens when a patient gets a root canal. A root canal is a procedure originally designed to save a tooth with too much nerve and tissue damage to remain alive, or viable. In other words due to infection, trauma, or decay the nerve, blood supply and pulp inside the tooth have been compromised and the tooth is dying or no longer alive. Without some kind of intervention (sometimes a root canal) the tooth may abscess, continue to decay–potentially affecting surrounding teeth or it may fall out, leading to additional problems.

Root Canals are performed by removing all of the soft insides of a tooth: the blood vessel that nourishes the tooth, the nerve, and pulp. Harsh chemicals are irrigated into the “canal” that is made after grinding out the inside of the tooth. The chemicals used to irrigate the new canal into the root of the tooth are intended to sterilize as much of the canal, or hole, as possible and to kill any remaining, viable or nonviable tissue. This equates to essentially embalming what remains of the tooth.

We know after decades of research, and thousands of patients, that removing 100% of the rotting tissue is not possible. In every case there is always necrotic (dead, diseased) tissue left behind, 100% of the time. The bacterial colonies and the infection eventually permeate surrounding tissue and bones, ultimately weakening and damaging local areas, but those same toxins and bacteria can also have a systemic effect on the rest of the body.

As toxins, from a root canal, infiltrate the blood stream and collect in organ tissues chronic health issues can become compounded and new health issues develop. Immune systems that are already under attack or otherwise compromised stand to sustain the most damage. As the medical news around this potential hazard continues to develop, many dentist are adopting new solutions to addressing a dead, dying or abscessed tooth.

If you have already had a root canal, or have had a root canal recommended come see our team and have an expert give you all of your options. Our team can give you healthy attractive alternatives that maintain and support your body’s overall health and immunity.

We do accept a number of different insurance plans at our practice. The truth is that dental insurance coverage is rare today for many people and insurance coverage for procedures varies greatly from company to company. More importantly, we cannot guarantee that your procedure will be covered by your insurance. It’s important to understand exactly what your individual insurance carrier will cover for you.

How do I find out if you accept my insurance?

You can call us at (713) 785-7767 to find out whether or not your insurance plan is one we accept. Since we are one of the only Biological Dentistry Practices that DO accept insurance chances are good we can bill your insurance directly.

How do I know what is covered on my plan?

The best way to find out what is covered on your insurance plan is to call your insurance carrier. Most of the time this is a fairly simple phone call and the representative can answer your questions about what your plan covers. Keep in mind that your procedure might not be fully covered. Most insurance companies use a formula to determine what percentage of a procedure they will cover so it is important to find out what your insurance covers as well as how much they cover.

What do I do next?

Call us (713) 785-7767 and find out if your insurance is a plan we accept. Making an appointment is easy and remember we are one of the only Biological practices that accepts insurance so if you have an insurance plan that includes dental insurance call us today (713) 785-7767.